The aim of this programme is to support the research needed to understand the risks posed by plastic pollution in low and middle income countries. It will explore which interventions, policies and regulations can mitigate these risks, enabling a cleaner, more resilient and productive environment.
Plastic waste is polluting the land, rivers and seas, impacting the health and wellbeing of both people and the environment, particularly in developing countries. The aim of this programme is to support the interdisciplinary research needed to understand the risks plastic pollution poses in low and middle income countries (LMICs) and to explore which interventions, policies and regulations can mitigate these risks. The outputs of the research will support economic growth and societal wellbeing by enabling a cleaner and more resilient and productive environment.
This programme is led on behalf of UK Research and Innovation by the Natural Environment Research Council under the Global Challenges Research Fund, a key component in the delivery of the UK aid strategy: tackling global challenges in the national interest.
Where appropriate, projects funded through this funding opportunity will be considered part of the UK contribution to the Commonwealth Marine Plastics Research and Innovation Framework, which aims to provide a platform and overarching structure for bringing together governments, industry, researchers and practitioners from across the Commonwealth to work together to tackle this global issue.
The aim of this programme is to support the interdisciplinary research needed to understand the risks plastic pollution poses in LMICs and to explore which interventions, policies and regulations can mitigate these risks. The outputs of the research will support economic growth and societal wellbeing by enabling a cleaner and more resilient and productive environment.
This programme will address the following themes:
- sources and drivers of plastic pollution
- impacts of plastic pollution
- intervention, mitigation and adaptation in response to plastic pollution.
As the focus is on understanding and managing the risks associated with the current plastic waste in LMICs, research to develop new forms of plastic or alternatives to plastic is out of scope for this programme.
The projects funded through this programme will be interdisciplinary and include the range of expertise (for example, from the arts and humanities, economics and social, engineering, physical, environmental and life sciences) needed to deliver the integrated cross-sectoral research needed to increase understanding of, and mitigate against, the risks plastic pollution poses in LMICs.
A key goal of the programme is to develop realistic and feasible solutions that will enable a reduction in plastic pollution. Interventions, strategies and approaches to tackling plastic pollution in LMICs will therefore be co-developed with relevant local stakeholders.